Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Local and Regional Governments Day observed on Day 6 of the COP14
The 14th Conference of Parties  to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification  currently underway at India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida entered Day 6 today. Keeping in line with the theme of the Conference i.e. “Restore land, Sustain future”, host of deliberations were held on matters concerning restoration of degraded land.
In the above backdrop, Network for Certification and Conservation of Forest  hosted a side event Panel Discussion on “Certification of Natural Resources to Combat Desertification and Restoring Landscapes”, with focus oncertification of various constituents of natural resources that enhances the sustainability of forests, agroforests, urban forests and NWFPs, thereby checking land degradation, helping in combating desertification and moving towards the ultimate goal of LDN. Senior officers from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change  – ShriSaibalDasgupta, Additional Director General of Forests;ShriJigmatTakpa, Joint Secretary; Ms Bharati, Inspector General of Forests, and eminent experts from notable organisations shared their views on the subject of combating desertification and how certification of natural resources could help address the problem of land degradation world-wide and in India.
The day also observed “Local and Regional Governments Day” providing a platform for key stakeholders to interact with global peers on matters concerning land degradation.
Meanwhile, the global Youth Caucus on Desertification and Land convened its first official gathering in conjunction with the UNCCD COP14 to bring together youth advocates from different parts of the world, to build their capacity, share knowledge, build networks and to engage them meaningfully in the UNCCD processes. The objective of the youth forum was to build capacity and discuss the topics of the COP that will follow.
Executive Secretary, UNCCD, Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw, said, "You youth are the advocates of positive change! Passion of youngsters towards climate change is inspiring. I encourage you to participate in restoring land to build the future you want to see”.
India is the host country of UNCCD COP14 beginning from 2nd to 13th September 2019.The Prime Minister, ShriNarendraModi will inaugurate the high-level segment meeting on 9th September, 2019 and will also address the August gathering at the Conference. Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change , ShriPrakashJavadekar earlier stated on the Opening Day that good outcomes are expected of the UNCCD which will be notified in the Delhi Declaration.
About UNCCD:
The UNCCD is an international agreement on good land stewardship. It helps people, communities and countries to create wealth, grow economies and secure enough food and water and energy, by ensuring land users have an enabling environment for sustainable land management. Through partnerships, the Convention’s 197 Parties set up robust systems to manage drought promptly and effectively. Good land stewardship based on a sound policy and science helps integrate and accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, builds resilience to climate change and prevents biodiversity loss.
The Convention entered into force in December 1996. It is one of the three Rio Conventions along with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change  and Convention on Biological Diversity . India became a signatory to UNCCD on 14th October 1994 and ratified it on 17th December 1996.